Football



Dec. 9, 1924.

G. L. PIERCE FOOTBALL Filed April 22' INVENTQR i 0 e TTORNEYJ Patented Dec. 9, 1924.

inure rare Laid-tit GEORGE L. PIERCE, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO A. Gr. SPALDING & BROS,

OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NERV JERSEY.

FOOTBALL.

Application filed April 22, 1922.

To alt whom it may concern.

Be it known that l, (in-ones L. PIERCE, a citizen of the United States, residing in the borough of Brooklyn, of the city of New York, in the State of New York, have invented certain new and useful improve ments in tbalis, of which the follov-wing is a speci 7 ference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

This invention relates to footballs and more particularly, to the leather casings of footballs of the type in which pneumatic bladders are inserted therein. In such footballs: it becomes necessary as the bladder is inflated to press the valve down in the easing and draw the edges of the opening therefor together by means of a. lacing to the end that the football may present a comparatively uniform and unbroken external spheroidal form. The strain placed on the lacing is considerable, of course, and this strain is taken up largely by the leather of the casing adjacent to the edges of the open ing therein. It has been proposed to reinforce these edges by means of additional strips of leather sewed in under the leather panels in proximity to the edges, the other sides of such reinforcing strips being sewed to the respective panels at points between the seams. in fact, such reinforcing strips have always been comparatively short in length and, therefore, necessarily of stout material and secured by stout stitching. The object of the present invention is to eliminate reinforcing strips having the characteristics described above since such strips have proven unsatisfactory in several respects. In the first place, they need to be of such stout leather themselves that they add materially to the bulge of the ball adjacent to the opening in the casing. Again, the stitching by which they are secured to the panels is exposed and not only presents a rough exterior but may be quickly cut out by wear thus destroying the usefulness of the reinforcing strips.

In accordance with the present invention it is proposed to provide improved means for reinforcing leather casings for footballs which means shall be of such character as not to increase materially the bulk of the casing nor, to any extent, cause any bulge thereof. A further object is to provide reinforcing strips to assist in resisting the Serial No. 555,964.

strains imposed on the panels through the la which shall. be so disposed with respect to the bladder as to be pressed thereby into snug engagement with the panels and transfer the strain. from the lacings uniformly to the panels over a relatively large superficial area rather than as heretofore, through a line of stitching. Still another object is to incorporate in a football casing reinforcing strips for the purpose described which may be sewn in place at the seams between adjacent panels and, if desired, by the very stitching which secures together adjacent panels.

Other advantages of the invention such as cheapness in cost, ease of manufacture, durability in use, will appear at greater length as the description proceeds reference now being bad to the embodiment illustrated, by way of example, in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure l is a View in perspective of an improved casing turned inside out.

Figure 2 is a detailed view in transverse section through an improved casing and the bladder showing the relation of parts when the bladder is inflated.

The drawings illustrate a conventional type of leather casingfor footballs of the kind now generally used in which four leather panels a, Z), c, d, are stitched toget-her along seams a, b, 0, cl, respectively, the general shape of such panels being such as to form when thus united a finished spheroid. As viewed in Figure 1 the casing is turned inside out but there it appears, as it does in Figure 2, that a suitable opening d is left in the seam 03 for the purpose of admitting the bladder e and later the filling tube 6 therefor. A lacing is threaded through holes a a former in the respective panels a, (Z, at opposite sides of the opening d but in proximity thereto, whereby after the bladder is inflated and the valve tube 0 tucked in the edges of the opening may be drawn snugly together thereby forming an unbroken exterior surface. The strain on the lacing is naturally very great and is impressed upon the panels a, (Z. To resist this strain it becomes desirable to reinforce these panels in some way and finish off the edges of the opening (2. Heretofore, stout reinforcing strips of leather have been secured to the inner sides of said panels in proximity to the opening but such strips being relatively stout have added bull; and some bulge to the casing and their exposed threads have been subject to quick wear and cutting thereby destroyingthe utility of the strips. In the improved construction reinforcing strips g, h of comparatively thin pliable leather are provided. lihe strip g is secured to the panel a in proximity to the opening (Z by stitching g and is secured at its other end at the seam (1, between the panels a and b. in the preferred form the very same stitching a which secures the panels together will also secure the strip 9 in place. The reinforcing strip it for the panel a is secured at one end by stitching it in proximity to the opening (Z and at the other end, in the preferred form, by a stitching at the seam c" betweenthe panels 0, d. The strips 9, it being pliable conform exactly to theinner oontour of the panels against which they are pressed by the bladder 6. They do not add appreciable bulk and create no bulge. lBy reason of their relatively large superficial area and the uniform pressure of the bladder on their inner faces any strains thereon are transferred directly to the panels against which they are pressed. Further, such strains are uniformly dis tributed over their area and over a large extent of the surface of the panels with which they are in contact. Therefore, it may be considered that strain on the lacing f is transferred uniformly to the panels a, (5, over an extended area.

The invention is not to be limited to the particular form or construction of the easing in which the improvements are incorporated since they may possibly be employed in other constructions to equal advantage. The scope of the invention Will appear from the appended claims.

hat I claim is: l. in a football, in combination with a leather casing therefor formed with an 4;;

opening and composed of a plurality of panels, a pneumatic bladder therein, a lacing to close the casing and comparatively thin reinforcing strips of a. width greater than the length of the opening and secured to two of the panels in proximity to said lacing and extending for the width of such panels and secured to the casing by stitching in proximity to the respective seams of said panels.

2. in a football, in combination with a leather casing formed of a plurality. of panels, an inflated bladder therein, said casing being formed with an opening through which the bladder may be passed, a lacing to close said openin comparatively thin reinforcing strips for the panels adjacent to said opening of a Width greater than the length of the opening and secured to the respective panels adjacent said opening, said strips extending for the width of said panels and secured thereto by the stitching for said panels.

3. A football casing composed of a pinrality of panels of leather secured together by concealed stitching, said casing being provided with an opening, reinforcing strips of thin pliable leather of a width greater than the length of the opening secured to different panels along the opposite edges of said. opening, by means of stitching, and extending for the width of said panels along the medium line thereof and secured to said panels at their free ends by said concealed stitching.

This specification signed this 19th day of April A. D. 1922.

GEORGE L. PIERCE. 

